Mufasa: The Lion King Defies All Odds for an Insane Box Office Milestone

Directed by Barry Jenkins, the musical drama film Mufasa: The Lion King, starring Aaron Pierre, Seth Rogen, Donald Glover, Beyoncé, Mads Mikkelsen, and more, served as the sequel and prequel to 2019’s The Lion King. The movie is dedicated to James Earl Jones, who voiced Mufasa in the animated version of The Lion King in 1994 and later reprised his role for The Lion King in 2019.

Upon release, the highly awaited movie received mixed reviews from the critics. The animation was said to have improved for good compared to previous movies; the screenplay was not so appreciated. Despite all the odds, Mufasa: The Lion King has managed to cross one milestone that needs to be celebrated.

Mufasa: The Lion King roars to the $500 million mark globally

Barry Jenkins’ Mufasa: The Lion King was one of the highly awaited movies of 2024. Aaron Pierre starred as the voice of Mufasa, the future king of the Pride Lands and father of Simba. The movie reportedly arrived at weak ticket sales but impressed the audience enough to drive them to theatres.

The photorealistic prequel competed against movies including Sonic the Hedgehog 3, Nosferatu, Den of Thieves 2: Pantera, and more. But, according to Variety, despite a slow start, Mufasa: The Lion King has managed to gross $588 million at the box office globally on a budget of $200 million. By crossing this milestone, Jenkins’ movie becomes the 10th 2024 movie to reach the $200 million mark domestically.

It should be noted that 10 movies crossing the mark of $200 million domestically showcases the sign of recovery for the industry since the COVID-19 pandemic. The milestone reportedly has not been achieved by 10 movies since 2019. 2019’s The Lion King ended its global run with over $1.6 billion, which seems like a long way to go for Mufasa: The Lion King.

In his interview with The Walt Disney, director Barry Jenkins was asked why he felt the need to expand the story of the original movie in Mufasa: The Lion King. To which he replied, that he was 25-26 years old when he got on board with the project, and for a 26-year-old, the idea of who Mufasa and Scar are was pretty much set in stone. He said,

One of them is the perfect depiction of good, greatness, being a great leader, being a great father. And the other is the exact opposite.

Jenkins mentioned he was just amazed by Jeff Nathanson’s script, which had much more complexity when it came to the characters. He added he was given an opportunity to explore just as complex, just as deep emotions in a whole new way. He also noted that the reason why people are able to resonate with the movie is because of how honest the emotions of the characters are.

After a whopping collection of $588 million, Mufasa: The Lion King became the seventh biggest global release of 2024.

Aaron Pierre hopes James Earl Jones is proud of Mufasa: The Lion King

The late actor James Earl Jones had voiced the character of Mufasa in 1994 The Lion King and then reprised it for the 2019 version as well. Unfortunately, the legendary actor passed away three months before 2024’s release. Talking about honoring Earl Jones’ legacy, Aaron Pierre shared on Good Morning America (via ABC News),

Not only was he a massive inspiration to me within the context of Mufasa, but he’s also been an enormous inspiration to me just in regards to the entirety of his artistry and his legacy.

Pierre added that for him, James Earl Jones is truly at the top of the mountain, and he hopes that with his performance, he was able to honor Jones’ legacy. Aaron Pierre, who was appreciated for his work by the critics and the audience, added that he hoped that he was able to make the late actor proud of what the team of Mufasa: The Lion King had put together.

The actor, in speaking to People, had mentioned a similar thing, stating that there is no word in his vocabulary to articulate how phenomenal James Earl Jones is as an artist. He feels grateful and honored to be able to have an opportunity to contribute his bit to one of the most beloved characters and a character that Jones created and brought to life.

Collider reported that Mufasa: The Lion King will soon likely get a release on PVOD platforms in a few weeks.